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The polls show Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama neck-and-neck in Ohio and Texas leading into “Super Tuesday II” tomorrow. Will Hillary be put out of her bitter misery or live to attack another day after suffering 11 consecutive, humiliating defeats in a row?

Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are in a close battle for support among likely Texas primary voters, while Clinton leads Obama in Ohio, an American Research Group Inc. poll shows.

Clinton, a New York senator, and Obama, an Illinois senator, are tied with 47 percent support each among Texas voters, the poll conducted Feb. 29-March 1 found. A similar poll taken Feb. 27-28 had Obama leading 51-44 percent.

In Ohio, Clinton is ahead 51-44 percent among the state’s likely Democratic primary voters. That’s little changed from the 50-45 percent advantage she had in an earlier February poll. Four percent of voters in both Texas and Ohio remain undecided, the new poll found.

Democratic primaries in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont are scheduled for March 4. Clinton is counting on wins in Texas and Ohio to boost her standing after 11 straight losses to Obama.

The poll showed Clinton leading Obama 52 percent to 40 percent in Rhode Island, while trailing him 34 percent to 60 percent in Vermont.

The talking points of Hillary surrogates are getting downright ridiculous. Beyond snort-worthy. Wesley Clark and Gloria Steinem argue simultaneously that Hillary has superior training over John McCain to lead the military because wearing a uniform and being held captive in wartime don’t give you any strategic wisdom and because, unlike all those evil military men and women who serve and defend our country, Hillary hasn’t been “trained to kill” and “play war games.” Here’s Steinem mocking McCain’s POW history ia the NYObserver:

McCain was, in fact, a prisoner of war for around five-and-a-half years, during which time he was tortured repeatedly. Referring to his time in captivity, Steinem said with bewilderment, “I mean, hello? This is supposed to be a qualification to be president? I don’t think so.”

Steinem’s broader argument was that the media and the political world are too admiring of militarism in all its guises.

“I am so grateful that she [Clinton] hasn’t been trained to kill anybody. And she probably didn’t even play war games as a kid. It’s a great relief from Bush in his jump suit and from Kerry saluting.”

To the Observer, Steinem insisted that “from George Washington to Jack Kennedy and PT-109 we have behaved as if killing people is a qualification for ruling people.”

Other Clinton proxies, notably Black Entertainment Television founder Bob Johnson and a New Hampshire campaign chair, Billy Shaheen, have generated controversies with their criticisms of Obama. By contrast, Steinem told me the Illinois senator was “an intelligent, well-intentioned person.” She added: “I would like very much to see him be president for eight years after Hillary has been president for eight years.”

But she also opined that “a majority of Americans want redemption for racism, for our terrible destructive racist past and so see a vote for Obama as redemptive.” Then, using a term for the mass killing of women, she added, “I don’t think as many want redemption for the gynocide.”

“They acknowledge racism—not enough, but somewhat,” Steinem continued. “They would probably be less likely to acknowledge that the most likely way a pregnant woman is to die is murder from her male partner. There are six million female lives lost in the world every year simply because they are female.”

And, of course, pointing out that a loser of 11 primaries and caucuses in a row might want to consider hanging it up is SEXISM, too:

In her speech, Steinem argued that there was a major sexist component to the murmurs from some quarters suggesting Clinton should abandon her presidential quest.

There is, she said, “a great deal of pressure at play for her to act like her gender and give in.” Several shouts of “No!” came from the crowd. Steinem went on: “It’s a way of reinforcing the gender roles, right? Men are loved if they win and Hillary is loved if she loses…But maybe we shouldn’t be so afraid of an open convention that actually decides something. After all, it was an open convention in New York City that gave us Abraham Lincoln.”

The classy ending and the update:

Steinem, like any good politician, also made sure to praise her surroundings. True to her own spirit, though, she did so in less decorous terms than any candidate for office would dare.

Other than Austin, she said, “there is no community in the whole world that understands how to include everybody, how to be serious and have a good time at the same time, how to be fan-fucking-tastic” quite so well.

UPDATE: The Clinton campaign sends over the following statement from Howard Wolfson: “Senator Clinton has repeatedly praised Senator McCain’s courage and service to our country. These comments certainly do not represent her thinking in any way. Senator Clinton intends to have a respectful debate with Senator McCain on the issues.”

Of course she does. You’re a bleeping SEXIST if you suggest otherwise. And don’t you dare, dare, dare question their patriotism.

Sen. Barack Obama said he is more qualified than his rival to deal with an international crisis and on Sunday brought the U.S. Senate’s top intelligence official to Ohio to vouch for him.

U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, said Obama shows more than a rookie interest in intelligence estimates.

“He knows what’s going on,” Rockefeller said, adding that Obama’s style to negotiate with both the nation’s friends and enemies is a welcome change to the unilateral posture of the Bush administration. Dealing with a national crisis is more than sending bombs, “but forging relationships in the world,” Rockefeller said.